AdAPTIVE Learning Environments UG4/MSc 2009-2010

Last updated: wednesday 16th March 2010 - assignments page updated and assignment 3 now added

1. Lecturer:

Helen Pain, Rm 425, Informatics Forum, 10 Crichton Place, email: helen@inf.ed.ac.uk, tel: 508485

2. Aims and Objectives

Increasingly technology is being used to deliver teaching materials with a view to improving learning. Increasingly such teaching and training tools are becoming more intelligent (often through the incorporation of AI techniques), better adapted to the individual learner (through user modelling), and more usable (through user-centred design).

Software developers are increasingly required to apply their technological skills to developing teaching and learning tools, but lack the educational background needed to maximise the teaching effectiveness of such tools. In contrast, experienced teachers and educators may better understand what makes effective learning technology, but lack the techological skills required to know how to go about designing and developing software and also what is feasible to develop.

This course aims to better equip students with the skills to design and evaluate intelligent and adaptive educational systems.

3. Teaching methods

This course will consist of lectures, student led seminars and discussions. Lecture slots are Tuesday and Friday 12.10 - 1pm in Appleton Tower, room 2.05.

Follow this link for lecture slides and related materials

Student led seminars on current learning environments will start in week 5. The information relating to this is here.

4. Assessment

There will be two coursework assignments for 4th Year Honours students, and 3 coursework assignments for MSc students.

Following this link for details of the dates, and three assignments.

Here are some notes to provide an indication of the style and content of the examination. (to be updated)

5. Syllabus

The issues addressed will include the following:

Previous development of teaching systems and limitations; adaptivity in relation to the domain and the learner;

Methodology: empirically informed and user centred design; involving students and teachers in the design process;

Modelling and simulating domain knowledge;

Modelling the user: diagnosis, errors and misconceptions; modelling affect;

Pedagogical Issues: theoretical and educational basis of teaching tools; using Pedagogical Agents;

Models of interaction and communication; Educational dialogue;

Evaluating the design and effectiveness of educational software.

6. References

There is no course text that you are required to purchase. Readings will be recommended and will appear on this page. Useful web links will be added as the course progresses.

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